- - Please visit: Legacy Horn Experience - -
**Trigger Warnings:
- Elliott Higgins,
- thoughts on misogyny,
- straight talk aimed at men.
Mr. Higgins is teaching me that trauma in the horn world exists, and that it is inextricably connected to his horrific story. Old wounds are being opened. #MeToo, for example.
Abuse exists in our horn world, done mostly by men who take advantage of innocent victims. It exists on a continuum, ranging from Elliott Higgins as the extreme example, to just plain words and tone of voice.
I confess
When I was young and stupid, I complemented an attractive female student on her appearance in a private lesson. Her demeanor and body language changed immediately.
I said nothing and moved on without saying anything, as if nothing had happened. I knew that I did something wrong; 30 years later and I still think about it. I remember her name.
I wish that I owned a time machine, where I could not only stop myself from saying what I said, but could also apologize to her for even thinking it in the first place.
Most likely I said other stupid things to other horn students, without even realizing it. I imagine that other men have done the same.
I am a witness
When I was a child my divorced mother dated black men, in the 1970s in Indiana – a bastion of the KKK. “Separate, but equal” was more-or-less still in effect; there were black schools and white schools in public education.
Some of the men Mom dated were married. I saw lies, and witnessed abuse and addiction. I experienced secondary racism. On top of this, Mom and I took care of her handicapped daughter (my sister), who required constant attention. I heard the insult “reee-tard” a lot as a kid, especially when carrying my horn case on the school bus.
As an adult, I lived in many places when pursuing a career in music performance: throughout the USA, in Mexico City, and a bit in Europe. I witnessed abuse, misogyny, predatory behavior, sexism, and racism in all these places.
Sometimes it was horn celebrities who were (and still are) well-known and revered.
Today I work in web technology, remotely from home, and play the horn as a hobby. I witness pervasive misogyny in the workplace and most social media.
I see predators
I hear and see things – over and over again – with certain men active in our field today.
These men engage in predatory behavior with intent and purpose, and get away with it.
They exude charm and charisma to seduce and manipulate victims. They game the system to remain employed and continue their abuse, for years on end.
See something, say something
Good-hearted men that find this repulsive, especially those who are leaders in the horn world, need to speak up. LOUDLY. This behavior is absolutely unacceptable. It is morally reprehensible.
Remember that if you see something creepy and say nothing, you are complicit… perhaps even culpable.
Burying heads in the sand and moving forward as if nothing is happening does not make a problem go away. It just allows the problem to fester like an open wound, and continue on and on in a vicious cycle, for years… even decades.
Case in point, Elliott Higgins.
***
If you were affected by Elliott Higgins and his actions, please seek help. You are not alone. Please do not keep it a secret. Talk to someone.
